This invention relates to a pitot pump and more particularly to a pitot pump which is ideally suited as the compression means in a heat pump thermodynamic cycle.
In most heat pumps, the compression means is of the reciprocating type. The use of a pitot as a pump in a heat pump environment offers several advantages when applied to the heat pump, the primary advantage being that of simplicity. A heat pump employing a single moving part which rotates at a high speed enjoys simplicity and low cost provided the rotating part is inexpensive of manufacture. The advantages of a gas-fired pitot pump suitable for home application are simplicity, compactness and cost. A gas-fired heat pump of the type described also permits the realization of performance many times better than currently realizable with conventional gas-fired equipment.
In the pitot pump of this invention, the fluid is imparted an angular momentum by a rotating element similar to an impeller and the resultant kinetic energy is transformed to pressure energy as the fluid passes through a diffuser-pick-off tube or pitot tube. The pressure developed in the pitot tube is ascertainable by conventional centrigual compression equations.
Therefore, it is a principal object of the invention to provide a pitot pump.
A still further object of the invention is to provide a pitot pump for use as the compression means in the thermodynamic cycle of a heat pump.
A still further object of the invention is to provide a pitot heat pump.
A still further object of the invention is to provide a pitot heat pump which is compact, simple and inexpensive.
A further object of the invention is to provide a pitot heat pump which is extremely efficient.
A still further object of the invention is to provide a pitot pump employing a plurality of stages which cooperate with each other to compress the refrigerant gas as it passes therethrough.
These and other objects will be apparent to those skilled in the art.